


A Danse Macabre

by TheObscure



Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: Blood, Character Death, Confessions, Depression, Dreams and Nightmares, F/M, Punishment, References to Depression, References to the Bible, Religious Guilt, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Romance, Roses, Spanking, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2018-06-01
Packaged: 2019-05-09 22:47:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14725040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheObscure/pseuds/TheObscure
Summary: You had been in love with Emitrius III ever since you came to the Church. When you hear of his death, you're stricken with grief and decide to not leave his side. However, when you're introduced to the new leader and Emitrius's replacement, he does everything in his power to comfort you as he gets to grips with leading the Church.





	1. Chapter 1

You looked up at the huge medieval church in front of you- a large clock sat on the front with large wooden double doors underneath. They looked heavy- as did the large brass knockers on either door. You gasped in shock when the large clock chimed midnight, a bell in the bell tower ringing with it. When the door creaked open in front of you, you tried not to scream when you saw a man standing there, black robes reaching just above his ankles as he looked at you. The large Pope style hat on his head told you he must be the Head of the Church. He held out a hand to you and, slowly, a smirk appeared on his face. 

"Welcome, Sister." The man said, you nervously smiled and stepped forward, shuffling your backpack awkwardly over your shoulder as you held your hand out and slid it into the man's gloved one. When you stepped inside, the door closed behind you with a bang and a thick carpet of dust skid along the floor, forming a cloud around your feet. The Church looked like any other- a row of 7 wooden benches on either side, an altar at the front and a steeple for baptisms. On the alter stood a large, old looking black leather book with a rusted gold clasp on the side. The man's hand tightened on your own as he walked you down the centre of the Church, turned and looked down at you. He was only a little taller than you but you didn't feel intimidated by him. "Welcome to our Church. We hope you'll be comfortable here. This is our communal area, worship is here and we have Confession Booths just through that curtain." He pointed to the right, when you followed his finger you saw a long purple curtain and you nodded. "I am Papa Emitrius III. And you are?"

"(name)." You informed him, he smiled when he finally heard your voice and nodded before he inhaled deeply and started walking once again. You took another look around the Church before following after Emitrius, he led you down a hallway and stopped at the very end, turning a large, old key in a large wooden door which opened with a creak. When he stepped inside, he lit a candle on the wall before lighting three more as you stepped into the room, smiling as you looked around.

"I hope this will be to your satisfaction. All the rooms are mostly the same, this is one of the larger ones, however." He informed you, you nodded and looked around the room again. The walls and floors were both stone, however some dark red curtains hand from the ceilings. There was an arched, stained glass window on the far wall and a large, four poster bed underneath it. There was a table and chair on the wall closest to you and a vanity unit with a large mirror and some old looking perfume bottles on it. "Please, take as much time as you need to settle in. Someone will come for you when you ring that bell." You looked at a large rope hanging from the ceiling beside the door and nodded. "Now, please relax and make yourself at home." With a slight bow, Emitrius smiled to you again and walked past you, closing the door behind him. With a sigh, you looked around the room again before sitting on the bed, smiling as you felt the softness of it. After a while, you unpacked your bag, hanging your clothes in the closet and putting your underwear in the chest of drawers beside it. After a few hours, you changed into a scarlet dress which reached your knees and tied your hair behind your head before you pulled the rope. You heard a bell chime somewhere in the distance and soon you heard footsteps coming down the hall. When there was a knock on the door, you opened it and went slightly wide eyed when you saw a tall, broad shouldered man standing on the other side with a silver mask covering his face. 

"You rang?" He asked, you studied him for a while, looking at his black suit with odd symbols on as his hands were behind his back. When you looked back up at the man, you smiled nervously and nodded.

"Um...Emitrius told me to ring this when I was ready?" You told him, he nodded his head and started to walk down the hall- you closed the door and quickly caught up to the man, standing a little behind him as you watched him. The man walked with his hands firmly behind his back, his head looking straight forward as he walked in silence. He led you down another flight of stairs before he stopped in front of an old, rusted door. When he opened one and stood to the side, you smiled in thanks as you walked inside. The room smelt strongly of incense and a layer of smoke hung heavily. There was a long table in the centre of the room, a high arched ceiling with large chandeliers hanging from it. There were six arched windows on either wall, all blacked out- the room was dimly lit with many candles and a vase of white roses sat in the centre of the table.

"Ah, Miss (name). Please, join us." Emitrius said as he held out a hand to you, you smiled as you walked towards him and took a goblet of wine he held out to you. You looked across at the men sitting at the table- there were more that looked like the one who escorted you to the room along with two older men. They both had their faces painted like skeletons like Emitrius and they simply nodded to you with stern faces. "Miss (name), these are my older brothers. These are my brethren." The other masked men waved to you, making you smile as you waved back. "So, how have you settled in?"

"Well, thank you." You told him, Emitrius smiled and took a drink from his wine- you did the same and looked around the room. You could feel Emitrius watching you and when you turned to look at him, a smirk grew on his face as he lifted his goblet to you, you did the same before you both took another drink. 

~~~4 Months Later~~~  
You sighed as you knelt on the floor in front of your bed, looking up at the moon through the large stained glass window. For the first time since arriving at the Church, you had recently started to miss your family and your home. You originally came here to get away from your normal, mundane live and you thought it was what you wanted. The past week you had done nothing but stay in your room, leaving only to wash and eat. You felt comfortable at the Church, everybody was kind to you and usually kept to themselves- especially Emitrius' eldest brother. You had found yourself developing feelings for Emitrius, though you didn't know why or if it was right. He was kind towards you, always made sure you were comfortable and satisfied. With a deep groan, you buried your head in your hands and sighed deeply.

"Are you... praying?" A voice asked behind you, making you scream a little as you turned around and saw Emitrius standing there with his arms folded across his chest. You made a move to stand, however when he walked towards you and placed a hand on your shoulder, you turned to face the window again and he knelt on one knee. You heard the rustling of his trousers as he did this and his leather gloves creaked as his fingers tightened on your shoulder. "What are you praying for?" You closed your eyes and looked towards the floor, hearing Emitrius sigh. "You can tell me." When you turned to look at him again, you nodded. He smiled to you, stood and took your hand as he helped you to your feet. He silently led you to the main hall of the Church, he moved back the purple curtain, held it open for you and dropped it behind himself. You looked at the two Confession booths in front of you and turned to look at Emitrius when he opened one of the doors. "Come on, step inside. Tell me what's bothering you." With a nervous sigh, you nodded and stepped inside, sitting on the wooden bench inside when the door closed. You looked around the small box, it was dark inside and smelt damp, musky and old. When the hatch beside you slid open, a hatched design was mirrored onto the wall of the booth by the candle light in the next one. You looked at Emitrius through the corner of your eye, you could just see that he was looking straight ahead.

"I... I'm having some mixed feelings." You told him, he hummed as he waited for you to continue-not interrupting you as he just allowed you to speak. With a deep sigh, you rested your head against the wall of the booth and closed your eyes. "I love it here. You know that. Everybody is so kind, you have all made me feel welcome and safe. But... I don't know if I made a mistake. What if I'm not made for this? I mean the other Sisters, they're so... so beautiful, so striking. What am I? I'm neither of those things. I think I'm... too plain for this. I... I the others as family now."

"The others? Who does that include? Not myself?" Emitrius asked, you opened your eyes and looked down at the floor of the booth. It was so dark you could just make out your feet as they swung from the bench. "(name), answer me. What did you mean? Am I not your family? Have I not shown you the same kindness as the others? Have I not cared for you whilst you have been here?" You heard Emitrius shuffle on the bench in the next booth as he moved closer to the open hatch. "Answer me." He demanded again. You sighed deeply as you looked at him through the hatch, surprised to find the mismatched eyes already watching you. "Do you believe dreams are sent to trick you into being distracted or to show you what you really want?" You asked him, he raised an eyebrow when you asked him this, making you more nervous. Your stomach tightened and you felt a little sick as you waited for Emitrius to reply. He hummed deeply and rose a gloved hand to his chin as he thought. "I believe it depends on the dream. What have you been dreaming?" He asked, your eyes widened a little as you thought about your dream, wondering what to tell Emitrius. When you heard a chuckle, you turned to look at him again to find him smiling a little to you. "Come now, we all have these dreams. Tell me, was it about one of the Ghouls? Sisters commonly have fantasies about the Ghouls, it's a mystery thing. None of the Sisters know what they look like beneath those masks and that allows the mind to run wild. Now come, tell me. Whatever is said in this booth stays here." Knowing some of the other Sisters had had similar dreams brought a sense of comfort to you, however you still felt a little sick as you took a deep breath and turned to look at Emitrius again. "I... I dreamt that myself and... you...made love." You said, squeezing your eyes shut when you said it. When you didn't hear anything from Emitrius, you opened your eyes again and turned to look at him- his expression caused you to gasp quietly. His eyes seemed dark and animalistic, his lips were twisted upwards into a smirk and one dark eyebrow was raised. You looked down at the floor again and took a deep breath, wondering if you had angered the man beside you. "I... I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have told you, it's just... it's been weighing heavily on my mind. Please, let me go back to my room and... think." With that, you quickly left the booth and ran through the main hall before Emitrius could follow you. Once you were in your room once again, you closed your door with a slam and rested your back against it with a deep sigh. "You idiot."


	2. Chapter 2

~~~3 Years Later~~~  
You laid on your bed, your knees tucked up to your chest as you stared blankly at the wall. It had been two nights since the incident and you hadn't left your room since- not to eat, wash or go to confession. You had hardly slept, you had simply cried and laid in silence. Many people had tried to bring you out of your room, but gave up when you didn't reply or answer the door. However, this time was different. There was a knock at your door, followed by a calming voice you recognised as Omega.

"(name)? I'm sorry to disturb you, but... he's ready." Omega said to you, you turned your head to look over your shoulder and looked at the door. After a few moments of silence, Omega spoke again. "We have been to see him, should I take you?" With a deep sigh, you finally stood from your bed and slowly walked to the door, taking a deep breath before you opened it. Omega's eyes widened when he saw you- your hair was a mess, you had dark bags under your sunken eyes and your skin was pale. You were wearing a plain black dress which was hanging off one shoulder, you pulled it up and looked up at Omega, feeling your dry eyes beginning to fill with tears again. The Ghoul sighed deeply and held out a hand to you, you looked down at it before you slid yours into his, closed the door and followed him down the hall. The walk to the lowest floor of the Church was quiet, neither yourself or Omega spoke and the only sounds were doors closing in other parts of the Church. As you passed the main hall, you could hear speaking coming from inside- voices you didn't recognise. When Omega led you down a red hallway, you stopped in front of the white double doors, breathing heavily as a tear fell from your eye and rolled down your cheek. Omega turned to look at you and squeezed your hand tightly, you simply nodded as you continued walking and stepped into the cold, quiet room after the man. You gasped when you saw the two older Emitrius' lying on the steel tables, motionless. "He's over here." You looked at Omega as he stood in the corner, his hands were linked in front of him and he was looking down at the table in front of him. You slowly walked to his side and instantly began to cry as you looked at the table- Emitrius looked peaceful, as though he was asleep. His face seemed calm, handsome and relaxed. You slowly reached out a hand and placed it on his cheek, however you quickly brought it away when you felt how cold he was. Omega placed a hand on your shoulder as you cried and held Emitrius's hand, pressing a kiss to the cold leather glove. "I'm so sorry. I know what he meant to you."

"Why? Why did this have to happen?" You asked him, finally breaking your silence on the matter for the first time since it happened. Omega sighed and pulled you tightly to his side as you held tighter to Emitrius's hand. "Please. Just... hold my hand. Curl your fingers around mine. Please!" You started to cry harder as you fell to your knees on the cold, white tile of the morgue. Omega knelt beside you and wrapped his arms around your shoulders, you tested your head on his chest and kept your stone hold on Emitrius's hand.

"Come on, this is too hard for you." He said, however you didn't budge from the floor when he stood again. "(name), please." You simply shook your head and pressed another kiss to the glove, wrapping your fingers around his tighter. After a while of trying to get you to leave, Omega left with a defeated sigh. You turned to look at the two brothers across the room and sighed deeply.

"I'm so sorry, guys." You whispered as you leant your head on Emitrius's hand, closing your eyes as you smiled. "Is this all a dream? Remember what you told me once? It depends what you dream, whether or not it's showing you what you need? Well I need you. I need you so much, Emitrius. Please, just wake up next to me again." You started to cry once again as you spoke to him, waiting to hear his voice respond to you.

You don't remember how long you had been asleep, but when your eyes opened the morgue was dark. Your hand was still holding Emitrius's and you tightened your fingers around his once again when you woke up. 

"Oh, my apologies. I wasn't aware someone was in here." A voice said to you, you turned to look over your shoulder and narrowed your eyes as you looked at the outline of a man in the darkness. You heard a switch and you soon groaned as a bright light bounced from the white tiles, burning your eyes. "Oh! I'm sorry! Not the best of starts." You opened your eyes again and raised one eyebrow when you saw the man in full detail- he was wearing a long black robe, a black hat and black gloves. He had dark circles under his eyes and a thin moustache on his top lip. When you looked at the pendant hanging around his neck, anger grew in your chest and you looked at him through narrowed eyes as a frown formed on your lips. The man noticed this and sighed as he stepped closer and held his hands up. "I apologise, I know I must be the last person you want to see right now. But please believe me, I had nothing to do with what happened to your friends. I was simply called by the powers that be."

"Sure. Do you think I'm stupid? This was all planned! The way he was carried off like that?" You replied, stopping as you felt yourself about to cry again. The man sighed and nodded as he stood beside the eldest brother, looking down at him before he closed his eyes and set a hand on his chest. In silence, he did it to the second eldest before he moved to you and Emitrius III. You quickly stood between Emitrius and the man, noticing he looked at you in confusion. "If you lay a finger on him I will kill you!" The man raised one eyebrow when you threatened him, you only grew more angry when a smirk crept onto his face. "You find this funny? Three good men are lying dead on slabs in a morgue and you find it amusing? What kind of fucked up humour do you have?"

"It is not the death I find amusing. I do not find anything amusing. I merely find your dedication to this man... inspiring. You are even willing to sit in a horrid morgue to be with him?" He asked, you remained silent as you looked down at Emitrius once again and ran a hand down his cold cheek. "You loved him, didn't you?" Your head turned to look at the man again and your eyes narrowed.

"Why do you care? Who even are you?" You asked him, looking down at Emitrius once again. The man stepped closer and held out a hand, causing you to look down at it before you looked at his face. You noticed his eyes were also mismatched and you almost gasped as you were reminded of Emitrius.

"Copia. I guess I'm the new... leader." He informed you, you looked down at Emitrius once again and sighed deeply. "I truly am sorry. I know how difficult it is to loose a loved one. Please, do not hold me accountable for what happened here. I had no say, as I said, I simply answer to the powers that be." With that, the man turned and started to walk towards the door again, stopping when his hands touched the door but didn't push it open just yet. "I hope that one day you can speak to me as you spoke with them." You turned to look at Copia again, seeing he smiled a little to you before leaving the morgue.

~~~2 Weeks Later~~~  
You had visited Emitrius every day as he laid in the morgue. Omega knew where you would be if anybody needed you, though nobody would bother you whilst you were in there. Tonight, as you made your way back to your room after showering, you stopped when you reached your door. You noticed a piece of paper sticking out from under the door; when you opened it, you picked up the paper and the red rose that sat on the top of it. You smelt the rose and smiled a little as you unfolded the paper and read the slightly messy handwriting:

'Roses always bring a smile to my face. The smell, the softness of the petals and the tender curve of the stem. A rose always fills me with warmth and happiness. I hope it will lift your spirits.'

Your smile grew as you read the note again before setting it on the table as you filled one of the old perfume bottles with water and sat the rose inside. That night, you heard talking coming from the main hall, you recognised the voices of Omega, Alpha and Copia, then there were two voices you had never heard before. With a deep sigh, you stood from the bed, opened your door and walked down the hall, stopping outside the hall and looking at the morgue doors before you pushed open the doors to the hall. Omega's eyes widened as he saw you, but he soon came to meet you and led you to the others. Alpha bowed his head to you and you smiled to Omega when he handed you some wine.

"Ah! The woman we've been waiting to meet!" A woman said in a loud voice, you turned to look at a middle aged woman standing across from you in a suit jacket, skirt and white shirt. She smiled to you and you nervously took a drink from your wine as you moved to stand closer to Omega. The woman looked at you with a wide smile, making you feel uncomfortable as you looked anywhere but her. "The woman infatuated by the dead?" This comment angered you, which Omega noticed, as a hand settled on your back to calm you- you looked up at the woman through narrowed eyes before you took a large drink. The woman turned to look to her side and you went wide eyed when you saw an ancient looking man standing beside her, his eyes were fogged and he stood with an oxygen cannister beside him with a mask hanging from it. His robes were golden and red, much different from the three Emitrius's and Copia. The man was staring right at you, but you didn't know if he could see you. "Est mulier a morgue.*" She whispered to the man, who nodded his head slowly before turning to whisper something to her. She smiled and nodded before her head turned to Copia- you noticed his back instantly straighten when she looked at him. "Copia, scitis inceptum tuum redi**". You turned to look at the man, noticing his eyes were widened as she spoke to him, he opened his mouth to reply, this warned a stern gaze from the woman. Copia's head dropped and he simply nodded. 

"Intelligo, Soror***." The man replied before he took a drink from his wine, keeping his eyes glued to the floor. You raised your eyebrow as you watched the man, wondering what she had just said to him. He was scared of the woman, that much you could see. When you looked back at the woman, her eyes were already watching you and she had a dark, twisted smirk on her face. You looked at Omega before taking a drink. Omega could sense how uncomfortable you felt around the woman but also you were growing more annoyed by her- you felt like she was mocking you, making fun of the fact you were in pain. 

"Well, it has been a pleasure to meet you finally, Miss." The woman said after a long silence. She linked her arm in one of the ancient man's and stood close to him. "Venite, Papa." When you heard the woman say this to the old man, your eyes widened and you looked at her with fury growing in your chest. You now knew who these people were. You dropped your glass and marched forward, trying to smack the woman-however, Copia stood in front of you and held you back, looking at you with wide eyes. The woman turned to look at you and laughed darkly before she led the old man out of the hall, letting the door slam behind them. 

"Why did you stop me?!" You shouted, Copia sighed and looked at Omega over your shoulder, who simply nodded to him before he began to clean up the spilt wine and broken glass. You sighed deeply and took a step back from Copia, closing your eyes as you calmed down. "That woman. Is she..." When Copia nodded, you sighed deeply and walked out of the room, letting the door close with a bang behind you as you placed your hands on the cool stone of the wall. You rested your head there and took some deep breaths, trying to calm yourself. 

"I'm sorry, but I couldn't let you attack Sister Imperitor. She's one of the most powerful people in the Church and I don't know what she would have done to you." Copia told you, you sighed again and looked to your side, seeing him standing beside you. He shuffled awkwardly on his feet as his hands joint behind his back. 

"What do you care what she'd do to me? You don't know me! You're scared of her, aren't you?" You asked, Copia sighed as he closed his eyes. 

"Boy, he sure was right about you." Copia told you, you drew your eyebrows together when he said this and shook your head. "Sister Imperitor wouldn't just hurt you. She would torture you. Make you suffer for every word you say against her. If you hit her, I do not know what she'd do." You crossed your arms over your chest and shook your head. "Yes, I am afraid of her. She has hurt me before. That is why I stopped you- I know how strict she can be." You sighed and nodded. 

"Thank you." Was all you said as you looked down at the morgue doors once again. Copia turned to look behind him at the doors before he looked back at you. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight." 

"Goodnight, Miss." Copia shouted after you as you walked away. When you were back in your room, you slid the heavy bolt across the door and threw yourself onto your bed, burying your face in your pillow as you groaned deeply. 

 

*=The woman from the morgue  
**=Copia, you know your task   
***= I understand, Sister


	3. Chapter 3

~~~3 Months Later~~~  
The day they had taken Emitrius away was one of the hardest days of your life. The night before you had stayed with him in the morgue, holding his hand as you sat on the cold, hard floor. Omega came for you the next morning, Copia followed closely behind him, telling you he wanted to say his goodbye to his predecessors. You thought nothing of it and stood from the floor, you placed Emitrius's hand back by his side and slid your hand back through his black hair, feeling your eyes filling with tears as you leant down and pressed a kiss to his head. 

"Goodbye, Emitrius." You whispered, pressing another kiss to his hair before you placed his hat back in place. Omega came and embraced you as you cried and walked away, saying your goodbyes to the two others as you passed. Copia nodded to you silently, you simply did the same in return before you went to your room. You didn't leave for two days, you were unable to face anybody, eat or even shower. When you finally did leave, you found Copia showing kindness and sympathy to you. You didn't know why, but you were drawn to the man- it almost felt like speaking to Emitrius again, he had the same sense of humour as him, the same kind nature and he listened to you in the same way Emitrius did. You grew closer to Copia every day, he listened to you as you spoke about Emitrius and showed no signs of boredom or insult. You had avoided the Sister and Papa Nihil since you last met them-which you thought was best. One afternoon, you were sitting in the main hall of the Church, looking up at the large stained glass window overlooking the whole hall. It was silent in the hall and you thought you were alone in the Church.

"Brothers and Sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope." Copia said from behind you, startling you a little. You turned around to look at him and smiled a little. He walked to the end of the bench you were sitting on and smiled to you. "May I join you?" When you nodded, Copia nodded in thanks and sat beside you on the bench. You noticed he wasn't wearing his usual robes-instead, he was wearing a black suit with a tailcoat jacket. You looked back up at the stained glass window and you both sat in silence for a while.

"You know, I always find these windows so calming. I don't know the stories behind them, but the art always relaxes me." You informed him, he turned to look at you and smiled as he glanced at the other windows.

"That one-" Copia said, pointing to one behind you, you turned to look at it and nodded as you waited for him to continue. "That one is about marriage. You see, God is making a woman from the rib of man. 'That is why a man leaves his Father and Mother and is united to his wife- they become one flesh.'." You looked at the window for a little longer before you turned to look at Copia and smiled- earning a small smile in return.

"Do you believe that? That women were made from the flesh of man?" You asked, he hummed in thought and crossed a long, slender leg over the other as he sat back and raised a hand to his chin as he thought silently.

"Women are much stronger than men. They are the fairer sex, after all. Women have the ability to give life, to carry and nurture it for 9 months before bringing it into the world and caring for it, feeding it with their own bodies. I believe women are truly amazing." Copia told you, you smiled and looked down at your hands linked in your lap. You felt the man's eyes on you, however when you looked at him, he quickly moved his eyes which made you smile and almost laugh. When the silence began to grow uncomfortable, you nervously turned to Copia and cleared your throat. 

"I have a window in my room... would you mind telling me the story behind it?" You asked him, Copia turned to look at you and, with a hesitant smile, finally nodded and stood from the bench. You led you down the hall and into your room, leading him to your window. You closed the door behind you and smiled as you watched Copia study the window. After around five minutes, he turned to look at you when you stood beside him and he smiled to you.

"Well, this is certainly suggestive." He told you, you laughed as you nodded and looked at the stained glass window of the naked woman with flames around her holding an apple in one hand with a black serpent wrapped around the other arm, baring its fangs and tongue. "This is about lust. The woman being the ultimate temptation, the apple representing the Garden of Eden and the Viper deception. 'But I tell you that anybody who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.'." You looked at Copia for a moment, noticing he was studying the window with a smile on his face. "Lust is a strange thing, isn't it? It's seen as a sin, an evil temptation. But, surely, God wouldn't have given man and woman the ability to feel lust and give life through lust if it was such a sin." You nodded as you turned to look at the window once again.

"Do you... want some wine?" You asked, Copia turned to look at you and smiled as he nodded slowly.  
~~~ Yourself and Copia had been talking for around an hour, about anything that came to your minds. He had told you a little about himself and his interests and how he came to get the role as the leader of the Church. You were currently sitting cross legged on your bed with Copia sitting in a chair nearby. "If you don't mind me asking this of you," Copia suddenly asked you smiled as you shook your head and took a drink. He looked over at you and sighed deeply. "what was he like?" You instantly knew who Copia was talking about and your eyes moved to the floor when he spoke. "Forgive me, that was an insensitive question." "No, it's... fine. He loved it when people asked about him." You told him, Copia smiled a little and nodded. You took a large drink and nodded as you cleared your throat and took a deep breath. "Well... he was one of the best men I've ever met. He was kind, caring, charming, funny...loving. He would always tell me how much he admired women, much for the same reasons you do." Copia laughed a little when you told him this and he nodded as he took a drink. "He always used to tell me that one of his favourite things about the female anatomy and body was... a female orgasm." Copia laughed and raised his eyebrows when you said this, you couldn't help but laugh when you remembered the many times he would explain it to you. "He used to say he found it beautiful how the female body could react in so many different ways to so many different things." When you felt your eyes tearing up, you put your almost empty glass down and brought your knees up to your chest. "I think he gave me this room for a reason. Because of the window." When Copia noticed you had started crying, he put down his own glass and came to sit beside you on your bed. His arms hesitantly wrapped around your shoulders and you found yourself moving towards him, resting your head on his shoulder as he comforted you. "I'm sorry. It's just... sometimes I forget he's really gone. I fool myself into thinking he's just gone away for business, that he'll be back at the end of the month." Copia hummed and ran a hand up and down your arm. "He wouldn't want you crying for him, would he? He'd want to see you smiling, happy! Why would anybody want to see such a beautiful woman upset?" Copia asked, you simply laughed a little and wiped your eyes. "Quasi bella Rosa. *" You leapt back when Copia whispered this to you, looking up at him with wide eyes. He looked back down at you with a small smile on his face and gently touched his hand to your cheek. "How did you know what he used to call me?" You asked, feeling a knot form in your stomach as you looked at Copia. His eyes now had the same glazed look Emitrius had just before he kissed you, before his head would slowly grow closer to yours before his soft lips gently pressed to yours. Copia smiled a little and gently brushed your cheek with his thumb. "We both must speak what we see." He whispered, your breath grew rapid and your heart was beating heavily in your chest. To your surprise, you found it was you who kissed Copia first- your hands nervously pressed to his chest as you edged a little closer. Copia kissed you back instantly, his hands settling on your waist as he closed the gap between you. His lips were rougher than Emitrius's, but he seemed to kiss you with the same passion. When you broke for air, you felt a twinge of guilt in your chest as you thought about what you had just done and-more worryingly-the growing desire you felt towards Copia. When you kissed him once again, you allowed yourself to fall back so he was hovering above you, his hands gently tracing the curve of your waist. The thin moustache gently tickled your top lip, causing you to laugh a little and break the kiss as you raised your hand there, you noticed Copia begin to laugh at your reaction as he watched you. When the man smiled like this, he looked like an almost different person-the harsh lines on his forehead eased and his eyes seemed brighter. When you calmed down, you smiled as you watched your hands slowly fall down his chest to settle on his stomach. "Are you regretting that?" Your eyes moved up to meet his again and before you even thought about the question, you found yourself shaking your head. With that, Copia leant down and pressed his lips to yours once again- this time, you allowed your arms to wrap around his waist and settle on his back as he kissed you. His mouth soon left your own and pressed gentle kisses down your cheek, jaw and one to your throat before he kissed the side of your neck, causing you you to gasp in pleasure as your hands climbed into his black hair. His mouth was warm and felt soothing to your skin- he seemed to know exactly the right places on your neck, the ones that got the reactions he was looking for. You moaned loudly when his tongue flicked over a particular patch of skin, just above your artery. Copia smirked against your neck and let out a deep sigh of pride as he did it again, causing your back to arch up and your chest presa against his own. He sat back and looked down at you with a small smirk on his face when he saw you-your cheeks were flushed, your eyes were half lidded and filled with lust and your lips were parted slightly as you breathed heavily. "How beautiful. You should be on one of these windows." He motioned to the large window above you both and you gently hit his arm-causing you both to laugh. Copia suddenly stopped laughing and he looked towards the door, sitting up straight with slightly widened eyes. "What is it?" You asked, however before he could reply, there was a knock at the door. With a sigh, you stood and straightened out your hair and clothes before you opened it, finding Omega standing at the other side. His back was straight, his hands behind it and eyes seemed nervous- you knew it was official business. "Omega?" "We are all required in the Main Hall. Now." Was all he said before he bowed his head a little and left, you closed the door and turned to look at Copia, seeing he had now stood and was correcting his hair in the old mirror. He walked to you and sighed deeply as he pushed a strand of hair behind your ear. "What is this about? You know, don't you?" You asked, however Copia didn't answer. He simply pressed a kiss to your head and left the room. You checked your reflection once before leaving the room, closing the door behind you before you made your way to the main hall. *=Like a beautiful rose


	4. Chapter 4

Inside the hall, the rest of the Sisters were sitting on the wooden benches, their covered heads looking down at the floor as they sat in silence. The Ghouls were sitting on the benches on the other side of the aisle with Copia sitting at the front. When the doors closed behind you, the Sister Imperitor and Papa Nihil both turned to look at you as they smiled a little, you simply sighed deeply and walked down the aisle, sitting beside Omega in silence as you stared right back at the woman. You noticed her annoyance at your action and you smiled a little to yourself.

"That is not your station. Move to sit with the others." She told you, however you didn't reply or move- you felt Omega shuffle closer to you on the bench, as though he was protecting you. The Sister simply sighed and smiled to you as she nodded. "Very well. We have brought you all here today to tell you of an exciting development in the Church." You turned to look at Omega, however he was looking dead ahead, as was everbody else in the hall. The Sister looked you dead in the eyes once again and her lips twisted into a wicked grin. "A new beginning! Following the destruction of the old ways by the former ruler, who has now been disposed of..." You felt anger growing in your chest as she aimed this at you, meaning to hurt you. Omega's hand reached out and settled on your own, calming you a little. "The Church has a new leader. One who promises to bring a new era. Cardinal, please." Your eyes followed Copia as he stood, he turned to look at you for a split second before he looked across the rest of the hall, nodding once before his eyes fell to the floor. You watched him as he stood beside the woman, he looked afraid of her-scared even.

"Thank you. I feel very welcome in your Church already." He said, the Sisters sitting in the other benches applauded, as did the Ghouls- you were the only person in the room who remained still and silent. Copia seemed tense and nervous as he stood there, you didn't know if it was the room full of people or the Sister standing beside him. When the elderly Sister stepped forward once again, Copia's eye once again fell to the floor.

"Now, thank you, Sisters. You may leave." The Sisters on the other side all stood and left the room however when you stood, the Sister laughed and shook her head. "Not you. I need to speak with you." You turned to look at the Sister and nodded as you sat back beside Omega. Copia sat back down, however this time on the bench behind yours. "Now, with this new beginning. I do not want any trouble from you- do you understand? Your beloved Papa Emitrius III is no longer here to protect you, to cover your back. Do not expect to go on here as you did when he was alive- fooling him with your charm." You began to laugh and shook your head, you stood from the bench and began to walk out of the hall. "I know of your plan of advancements on the Cardinal." When you heard this, you stopped walking and turned to look at the woman again. Omega had turned to look at you- however you looked straight back at the woman.

"You know? How can you possibly know?" You asked as you started to walk down the aisle towards her, hearing the bench beside you creak as Omega prepared to stand and stop you. You stopped at the end of the bench and laughed as you looked at the woman. "Do you truly believe what you say? It must be so difficult to. Nobody else does." The Elderly Papa raised the oxygen mask to his mouth and breathed deeply, momentarily bringing your attention to him before you looked back at the woman.

"The truth is never hard to believe. The Cardinal dedicated his life to the Church long before you thought of opening your legs to him." She spat at you, with an annoyed groan you walked forward and struck out at the woman, however Copia soon appeared behind you and caught your hand-his arms wrapped around your waist and held your back to his chest. The elderly Sister laughed as she looked at you struggling against the man, which only made your more angry. When she clicked her fingers, two Ghouls stood from the bench and stood beside her. "Take Papa to his room." When the two Ghouls led the elderly man out of the room, she turned to look at Copia and motioned for him to stand away from you. She held her hand out to the bench, however her eyes remained on you. "Omega. Your belt."

"No!" Copia suddenly shouted, causing you to look at him- he walked forwards and stood in front of you, shielding you from the woman. "Don't hurt her. I'll take it for her- just leave her be!" You looked at the back of the man's head before you looked back at the woman- her face looked angry and her eyes were dark, however, she slowly nodded.

"Very well. Omega. The belt." She demanded again, the Ghoul hesitantly removed his belt and held it out to the woman, however she didn't take it. "Hand it to Sister (name)." Your eyes widened when she said this and you shook your head when Omega held it out to you. "Bare his back."

"No! Stop this, this is insane!" You shouted to the woman, however Copia knelt in front of you and removed his jacket, undoing the buttons on his shirt and holding his arms wide for the two Ghouls to remove it. When it was thrown to the ground, Copia kept his arms out and you gasped when you saw ropes being tied around his wrist, keeping him tied to the benches beside him. You sighed when you looked at Copia's back, there were signs of past punishments on his skin- light pink, bumped scars. "Well? I'm waiting." The Sister said to you, Copia simply nodded to you without turning around. With a deep sigh, you took the black leather belt from Omega, held the buckle tightly and wrapped it twice around your hand, getting a tight enough grip on it before you raised your hand and closed your eyes as you brought it down on Copia's back. The harsh sound of leather cracking against his skin echoed around the room made you flinch. You heard Copia gasp in pain and, as you slowly opened your eyes, you saw his hands were bundled into fists, gripping so tightly on the rope it began to dig into his wrists. There was a long, bright red mark across the centre of his back- making you sigh. "Do not stop until I tell you." You looked at the elderly Sister and breathed deeply before you struck the Cardinal's back again-hearing a louder groan come from his lips. Sister Imperitor raised her hand after twenty lashes. You dropped your arm to your side and watched as the woman stood from her chair and simply left the hall without another word. Only when the door slammed shut did you drop the belt to the floor with a clang and run to kneel in front of Copia. His head was hanging towards the floor and his eyes were closed, his lips were parted slightly but his breathing was shallow. You put your hands on the man's cheeks and felt a small amount of relief when his head lifted and he looked at you for a moment- unusually, with a small smile on his face. Soon after, his eyes closed and his head fell once again. "Copia? Copia! Untie him!" You shouted, Omega quickly untied the man's wrists and you managed to catch him as he fell forward. "Omega, help me!" The Ghoul nodded as he helped you lift the man to his feet and you both guided him out of the hall and to your room. Once he was settled on your bed, you fetched a bowl of warm water and a cloth. "This a what he wanted." Omega suddenly said, you turned to look at him with one eyebrow raised. The Ghoul looked more relaxed, he walked towards the door again and put his hand on the handle, but turned to look at you. "Emitrius. He wanted you to be safe from her. He chose him to do that." With that, he opened the door and left. You turned to look at Copia on your bed, still unconscious and you suddenly started to cry. As it grew darker, you lit candles around your room and sat in the chair, reading an old book you found in one of your closets. Copia's trousers and a fresh shirt were sitting on the top of your vanity unit- the tops of his trousers were dampened by the cloth and so you removed them and set them to dry, covering him with a sheet as he rested. When you heard a groan from your bed, you put the book down and knelt beside it, looking at Copia as his eyes slowly opened. "You shouldn't have done that." You said, he turned to look at you and sat with a loud groan, you helped him and placed some pillows against the wall so he could sit back a little easier. He smiled to you a little and coughed. "You're welcome." He managed to say, making you laugh a little as you shook your head. "I couldn't let her do that to you. I've dealt with it before- it was much easier for me." You sighed as you sat on the bed beside him, looking at his wrists. "Scars heal." You turned to look at him and smiled when he leant forward and kissed you once again. His hand settled on your cheek where as yours settled on his thigh. Copia hummed against your lips as your hand grew higher on the sheet, you felt you couldn't stop your hand as it dipped beneath the sheet and wrapped around him. Copia broke the kiss and rested his forehead on yours as he moaned quietly. His hand moved to your waist and gripped tightly as your hand began to move, his moans growing louder as you increased your speed. When Copia kisses you harder than before, you brought your hand away from him, moved the sheet back and climbed into his lap. His hands pushed your dress up your thighs and gripped them tightly with his leather gloves as you lowered yourself onto him-you both broke the kiss to moan loudly before you slowly started to move. Your hands carefully settled on his shoulders, avoiding the tops of the marks left by the belt as your fingers tightened around his shoulders. One hand remained gripping your thigh tightly whilst the other held your waist, following the gentle rhythm of your hips as his head fell back to rest on the wall and he moaned deeply. As you moved, you looked down at Copia and moaned quietly, you couldn't help but notice he looked a little like Emitrius like this- eyes closed, mouth slightly parted with deep moans emitting from his chest. His Adams Apple bobbed as he swallowed, trying to we his dry throat before a long, deep moan rose from deep in his chest. His eyes opened and he moved his head forward to look at you when your hands moved to his chest, feeling the muscles moving beneath as he started to thrust upwards, matching your movements. "What is it?" He asked, you looked down at him and shook your head, trying to clear your mind. When Copia's hands settled on your hips, holding them still, you looked at him again and sighed. "Him?" "I'm sorry. You just...looked like him for a moment." You quietly said, making a move to climb off Copia, however his hands wouldn't budge. You sighed deeply once again and put your hands on his cheeks as you leant forward and kissed him deeply-groaning against his lips as Copia kisses you back and moved his hips again. His hands remained on your hips, digging in a little. When he broke the kiss, your face remained close to Copia's as you both moaned quietly, he suddenly sat forward and laid you on your back, soon hovering above you as his hips sped up a little, causing you to moan louder and hold on tightly to his sides. He leant down and pressed a kiss to your neck, kissing lower until he reached the centre of your chest before he kissed you once again. A tight knot was forming in the bottom of your stomach, your moans were growing louder and your grip on Copia was tightening. With a smile, he thrust fast and roughly, causing you to moan loudly as your back arched and your head fell backwards as you came. Copia looked down at you in what looked like fascination as he watched you unravel beneath him, a small smile on his face when you fell back against the bed again, breathing heavily. You weren't sure when Copia finished, but when you opened your eyes he was lying beside you, pressing a kiss to your shoulder. You turned to look at him and smiled a little as you ran a hand across his cheek and into his hair- you were a little shocked when he started to laugh, you sat up a little and rested on your elbow as you looked down at him. "What's so funny?" Copia looked up at you and smiled as he stopped laughing, shaking his head a little. "Tell me!" When you jabbed his rib, he laughed and caught your hand in his, kissing the back of it before he answered. "What will Sister Imperitor do to me when she finds out about this?" He asked, you looked down at him for a moment until he laughed, making you laugh too before you laid back down beside him.


	5. Chapter 5

You felt a chill on your bare arms, legs and feet as you stood in the hall- you didn't know where the breeze was coming from, but goosebumps were rising to the surface of your skin and your small hairs stood up on end.

"What are you doing out here, hm?" You heard a familiar voice ask you, you looked down when you felt a pair of arms wrap around your waist and two white gloved hands settled on your stomach. Your eyes gently closed when you felt a pair of lips press a kiss to the back of your hair, smelling it before another kiss was pressed there. Emitrius moved your hair over one shoulder, pressed a kiss to the back of your neck and sighed deeply. "You should be asleep." Your head fell back when his lips kissed the side of your neck and his hands traveled to your chest, gently squeezing before they moved back to your stomach. "Everybody else is." This he whispered to you, close to your ear and a chill radiated down your spine. 

"I am asleep." You whispered to him. Emitrius let out a small, quiet laugh before he stood in front of you. He took your hands in his and pressed a kiss to the back of each one.

"Open your eyes." He whispered to you, when you did, you gasped when you saw him. He looked exactly the same-he was wearing a white suit and there was a faint glow around him. He smiled to you and wrapped his arms around your waist, bringing you closer to him. When your chest touched his you took in his scent, pressed a kiss to his throat and broke into tears. "Why the tears?"

"I miss you. So much." You told him, Emitrius took your face in his hands and smiled to you. "Take me with you. Please.".

"You know I can't do that. You're asleep, love. When you wake, I'll be gone." Emitrius told you, wiping the tears that rolled from your eyes with his thumb. "I sent someone to take care of you. I know it's not ideal, but I had to keep you safe from her. Promise me, no matter what happens, listen to the Cardinal. For me." You looked up at Emitrius again and nodded as you kissed him. His hands tightly held you as he kissed you back, your hands climbed into his hair as you deepened the kiss. When a clock chimed, Emitrius broke the kiss and took a small step back. "It's time for you to wake up."

"No. Please, don't leave me." You said, however Emitrius was beginning to fade. You tried to cling to his hands, but you were soon left alone in the hall.

"Sister? Sister? (name), wake up!" Omega said as he placed a hand on your arm, your eyes opened and you sat up with a jolt, breathing heavily as you looked around the room. "You were having a dream. A bad one, i think." He brought a hand forward and wiped a tear from your cheek, bringing your attention to the semi-dried tears on your cheeks. You turned to look at the Ghoul kneeling beside your bed and nodded. "The Cardinal has asked to see you. In his office." You sighed and nodded before Omega left your room. You dressed in your robes and sighed when you checked your reflection in the mirror once before leaving your room. You climbed two flights of stone stairs and stood outside the large Oak doors with the brass designs- you hadn't been here for so long. Emitrius always kept his office in pristine condition, no mess or clutter. Would it still be the same? You knocked on the door once and entered when Copia shouted. You closed the door behind you, took a deep breath and turned around- the office looked almost the same. Emitrius's things had been cleared away and replaced with Copia's, some of the paintings were different and the long, purple curtains had been replaced with scarlet ones. There was classical music playing over an old record player and speaker, which made you smile. When your eyes finally settled on Copia, you smiled as you watched him for a few moments. Copia was looking through a stack of papers, his eyebrows were drawn together and a tight frown had formed on his lips. You cleared your throat, causing him to jump and drop some of the papers on the floor. You covered your mouth as you laughed a little, gathering his attention. He smiled to you, stood straight again and held out his hands to you. You walked to meet the man, taking his hands in yours as he pressed a kiss to the backs of either of your hands. "Ah, (name). Thank you for coming. I'm sorry, I didn't see you." He told you, you simply shook your head and helped him clear away the papers, when they formed a neat stack on his desk he smiled to you and motioned for you to take a seat. When you did, he handed you a goblet of wine and you thanked him with a smile before you took a drink. Copia was wearing the same black suit as yesterday, though this one looked new. He took his seat and sighed deeply as he flicked through a large looking book, moving it to the side with a groan before he sat back, looked around the desk and shook his head. You couldn't help but find this a little odd-Copia was acting as though nothing had happened between the two of you last night and, as you watched him now, you were beginning to wonder if the whole thing had been a part of your dream. "How is your back?" You asked, Copia smiled to you and nodded as he took a drink, looking at you as he sat across the desk. "Omega said you wanted to see me?" "Ah, yes I do. I wondered if you knew where Emitrius kept his files. I need to get to know the Ghouls." He informed you. "I've searched the whole room and I can't find anything, how organised was he, exactly?" You laughed at his clear growing frustration and stood from the chair, walked to a large cabinet and knocked on one of the wooden drawers. With a smile, Copia stood and joined you, knocking on the same drawer. "It is locked and there is no key." He told you, you laughed smugly and walked to the desk once again, lifting the heavy black candle holder and lifting a key up, showing it to Copia. His shoulders slumped and he parted his lips as he looked between you and and the key. "How did you know that was there?" With a smile, you walked back to him, unlocked the drawers, took out the files about the Ghouls and handed them to him before you set back at the desk. Copia stood in disbelief for a moment before he joined you once again, setting the folders down on the desk and taking a drink from his wine. "I didn't know you liked Mozart?" You asked him, Copia smiled and nodded as he began to flick through Alpha's file. You smiled as you hummed along to the tune of Ave Vernum Corpus, gathering Copia's attention. His head raised and he looked at you with a smile. One eyebrow was raised as he sat back in the chair, listening to you. "I didn't know you were. So full of surprises." He replied, you smiled and continued humming. "You know, Emitrius kept this place clean. I'm scared I'll make a mess of it. I'll try not to. Oh, I found this in his drawer. I think you should have it." You went wide eyed when he opened the desk drawer and passed you over a silver locket. When you opened it up, you brought your hand to your mouth when you saw a photograph of yourself and Emitrius inside-the outer case had his symbol engraved into the silver. You ran the pad of your thumb over the engraving before looking at the photograph inside once again, you were unaware a small smile had crept onto your face. "It looks like it was a happy day." You looked across at Copia and nodded as your smile grew, he sat forward and took the locket when you handed it to him. He smiled as he looked at it before opening it up, his eyes seemed to scan Emitrius' face before he handed it back to you. "It was. The rose gardens had just bloomed, it smelt wonderful! Emitrius didn't tell me and took me there, they're my favourite flowers, you see." You told him, Copia listened with a small smile on his face, he looked genuinely interested in the story. "When we got there, he took me to sit on a small bench in the centre, looking at all those roses-thousands of them, red, white and pink. I took the photograph that afternoon. I suspect the gardens will be removed soon, they'll stand in the way of her 'New Era'." Copia sighed when he noticed your head fall and your eyes looked at the floor, your hands clutched onto the locket for a moment before you slid it into your pocket. "Thank you, for giving it to me." "Not at all. If the Sister or Papa found it, I would hate to think what they would do." He told you, you heard sympathy in his voice and something that sounded a little like guilt- did Copia blame himself for this? You knew it wasn't his fault, Omega and Emitrius-although in a dream-had both told you Copia was chosen to keep you safe from Sister Imperitor but what if that wasn't the truth? With a sigh, you took a drink from your wine and closed your eyes as you listened to the rest of the classical piece. "You know," his voice caused your eyes to open again and you smiled as you waited for to continue. Copia finished his wine, wiped the corner of his mouth with his thumb and looked across at you. "I want you to know if you ever need to... get away from anything, everything. You are always welcome here. If you came here before when it was Emitrius' domain, then you may continue. If you feel safe here, then please" You smiled when Copia told you this and you nodded in thanks. "Thank you, Copia." You replied, he smiled and nodded to you before he stood and refilled his goblet, filling yours to the top once again before he walked to the record player. When the record changed to another classical piece, you smiled and closed your eyes when you felt gloved hands begin to gently massage your shoulders. You hummed and allowed your head to fall to the side. "I can see how hard this is for you. Please know I'm here if you need to talk. That's what the head of the Church is for, after all." He said to you in a quiet voice, he moved your hair and pressed a kiss to your neck, making you smile as an electric energy shot through your body. When you moved your head backwards and looked up at him, Copia leant down and kissed you, running his hand down your throat and chest. He hummed deep in his chest and took gentle hold of the pendant around your neck-the Church symbol that all members of the Church had to wear. When he broke the kiss, you stood from the chair and wrapped your arms around him, kissing him again but with more need. Copia walked you backwards until the backs of your thighs hit the edge of the desk and you fell backwards onto it with a dull thud. Your hands instantly set to work removing his jacket and it fell to the floor-his hands pushed your dress up your thighs and he dropped to his knees to press kisses to each. You gasped when he roughly pulled them upwards, he put your legs over his shoulders and smirked down to you as he pressed a kiss to your inner right thigh before he bit it, causing you to moan loudly in a mixture of pain and pleasure. As Copia ran his tongue over the mark, soothing the burn a little, his free hand settled between your legs and applied a little pressure, causing you to moan once again. "Such beautiful noises." With that, Copia but your thigh once again, receiving the same reaction as before as your back arched from the desk. "All this reaction for such a small thing?" You could tell he was teasing you and, when he bit your thigh again, you moaned his name loudly-hearing him moan deeply. "Cardinal?" A voice called when there was a knock on the door, Copia turned to look at the door before looking back down at you when there was another knock. "Copia, are you in there?" Copia sighed and stood from the floor, holding out his hands to help you. "In there." He whispered to you, pointing to a closet on the other side of the room. You straightened your dress and stepped into the closet, hearing the door open once Copia straightened his clothes and retrieved his jacket from the floor. "Ah, Sister. How may I help you?" You watched through the keyhole of the closet and saw Sister Imperitor walk into the room, looking around as Copia sat down. "I thought I heard someone in here." She said, Copia simply looked up at her and shook his head before flicking through the files once again- taking a drink from his wine. His eyes fell on your goblet and he motioned to the woman to take a seat. "Thank you. Now, I've come on business. I see you've found the files like I asked you. That fool kept everything hidden in here." Your eyebrows drew together as you watched her take a drink from the wine and cough a little. "What did you need to speak to me about?" Copia asked, you smiled when you noticed he ignored her comment about Emitrius. Sister Imperitor sighed deeply and put down the wine again, sitting forward. "It is time. You need to talk to the Ghouls." She told him, you raised an eyebrow and wondered what she meant. Copia sighed and nodded as he stood from the chair and closed the file he was reading. The Sister stood after him and took another look around the room. "You need to get that... Sister in order. How she acted yesterday was unbelievable. And what did you think you were doing? Taking her punishment? Do I need to remind you that you are here to bring a new era to this diseased Church? Don't fall for her ways, Cardinal." You noticed Copia bundle his hands into fists and you heard the leather of his gloves creaking-he was really annoyed. "Lets go, shall we?" Was all he said as he opened the door, allowing the Sister to leave first. He shot a look to you before nodding and leaving the room. You remained standing in the closet for a few more moments before you left, looking around the room for a moment before you checked the hall outside, seeing it was safe for you to leave.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kinda kinky. I don't know I listened to Year Zero and this happened...

The bites on your thighs stung a little when you showered that afternoon, however they were now only aching. It was early evening and everybody had left the Church on business. You were sitting in the Main Hall, silently looking up at the large stained glass window once again. When you heard a door open, you turned and smiled when you saw Copia stepping into the room.

"I thought everybody was out. What are you doing here?" You asked, he simply shook his head, closed the door behind him and slid the bolt across the large door. You watched with one eyebrow raised as he walked to the other two doors, sliding the heavy bolts across them too. "Copia?" The man's boots echoed around the silent hall, followed by another sound. When he reached the end of the bench, you noticed he was holding a black cane with a silver handle and tip. "Why do you have that?" Copia looked down at you and motioned for you to stand. You did and looked at him, laughing a little "What's wrong with you?"

"Sister Imperitor brought it to my attention that you've been taking advantage of your previous comforts." He finally said to you, you laughed and shook your head when you heard this. "I don't know how I was so stupid to fall for your tricks." You almost believed Copia was being serious, if it wasn't for the smirk that appeared on his lips when he said the next line. "I've been told to punish you." He laughed a little and looked down at the floor, making you laugh too. You took the cane from his hands and looked at it, spinning it in your hands a little before you handed it back. "What did she tell you to do?" You asked, Copia used the handle of the cane to itch the back of his head before he cocked it to one side and looked at you. His white eye seemed brighter than usual in the dimly lit Main Hall. A smirk appeared on his face and he stepped closer to you, backing you up against the alter at the front of the hall. "Turn around." He said in a low, demanding voice that sent an electric chill through your body. You did as he said, turning and placing your hands on the cold stone of the altar as you looked up at the stained glass window. You startled a little when you felt a gloved hand settle on your waist and his hips pressed against your rear. You felt something hard and cold move from the top of your spine to the very bottom. You felt Copia lean in close to you and his mouth soon breathed hot air onto your ear, making you shiver. "She told me to bring you to my office and make you suffer some form on punishment for your behaviour yesterday." You laughed as you pressed your rear out slightly, hearing him groan. When he took a step away, you yelped quietly and jumped when you felt something hard hit your rear, turning to look over your shoulder you saw Copia standing with the cane over one shoulder as he smirked to you. "Turn back around." With a smirk, you raised your hand to your head and saluted the man, making him laugh and crack his stern attitude before you did as he bid. You heard the cane moving from his shoulder before it smacked against your rear, causing you to jolt once again and gasp loudly. Deciding to see how far you could push your limits with Copia, you moved your rear backwards and dropped lower, causing it to drag down his crotch before you stood once again. You heard the man behind you groan as he watched and felt this, causing a proud grin to break out across your face. You stood up straight, turned to face him and smiled as you sat on the altar, crossing one leg over the other as you looked at Copia. His face was flushed, he was sweating and his eyes seemed glazed. "I'm supposed to be punishing you. Sister Imperator was correct about you, after all." Copia walked towards you, abandoning the cane on a nearby bench so his hands could settle on your thigh, moving your dress upwards as he stood close to you. With a smirk, you took hold of his jacket and pulled him closer to you, you ghosted your lips over his and moved your hand down to his crotch, gripping harshly which caused his eyes to close and him to moan deeply. "Have you 'fallen for my tricks'?" You asked him, kneeling on the altar and gripping his collar, bringing his face close to yours but not touching your lips to his. Copia looked as though he would explode- his cheeks flushed a deep red and his forehead beaded sweat, his breath was deep and rugged and his hands tightly held your waist, the leather clad fingers of his gloved digging deeply into your hips. "That old bitch acts like I'm the Devil himself." Copia raised an eyebrow when you said this and scanned your body before they met yours again. "I'm starting to wonder if you are." He whispered to you, with a smirk, you climbed down from the altar, retrieved his cane and smirked as you beckoned for him to follow you with one finger. You led him to his own office and opened the door, you closed the door behind Copia and rested your back against it, bringing one foot to rest against it. When he walked towards you, your raised the cane to his chest and stopped him, smirking as you cocked an eyebrow. Copia laughed and ran his tongue across his bottom lip as he dropped to his knees, causing the end of the cane to meet his lips. You watched Copia as his tongue left his mouth and slightly licked the end of the cane without taking his eyes from yours. He smirked when he noticed a flush appear across your cheeks. "Take your shirt off." You demanded, Copia obeyed with a nod of his head-standing to remove his jacket and then his shirt. They both fell to the floor and the man stood in front of you with his arms spread wide-only now did you notice the thick patch of black hair that rose from the waistline of his trousers, trailing up to his navel. Copia smiled as he noticed you admiring his chest and slightly pudgy stomach-he was in good shape for a man of his age, not that you knew what that was but he was older than yourself. You walked straight past the man and stood in front of his desk, he turned to look at you over his shoulder when you began to undo the buttons of your robe. He had turned to fully face you when it pooled around your feet and you stepped out of it, holding out the cane to him again as you turned and rested your chest and stomach on the table. "You better do your job. Before the Sister gets back." You heard Copia walking closer to you until he stopped behind, running a warm gloved hand over your rear before he slapped it roughly with his hand, causing you to moan slightly and the harsh sound to echo from the walls. He let of a hum of his own before he did it again, gaining a louder moan from you. When his hand was replaced by the cane it was more painful and you jolted a little, but remained in place. As Copia continued, his hits with the cane grew harder and harder until he finally stopped-your thighs were shaking and a harsh, burning pain emitted from your backside. You heard the cane be thrown to the floor, before two hands settled on your shoulders, turning you around. You did so slowly and smiled to Copia when his eyes met yours. "Are you okay? Was I too-" You cut the man off by kissing him roughly, setting to work undoing his trousers instantly. You moved them down his legs and he kicked them off the rest of the way before you were roughly laid back against the hard wood of the desk. Copia stepped between your legs and brought them up roughly, smirking down to you as he stooped and ran his tongue from the bottom of your stomach to the centre of your chest, repeating the action three times before he straightened his back and lined his hips with yours. When he pushed forwards, you both groaned and your hands gripped the edges of the desk beneath you when Copia began to move his hips. His actions were rougher this time-you were being pushed further up the table with each harsh thrust, but were brought back down by Copia. You gasped when he suddenly stood and lifted you from the table- his age clearly didn't affect his strength. You wrapped your legs around his waist and kissed him when your back met the cold stone wall and be continued to move, roughly once again. Your arms wrapped around his shoulders and your hands climbed into the back of his hair as you moaned against his lips. When you broke the kiss for air, Copia smirked up to you and thrust harder and deeper, causing your head to fall back and your eyes close tightly as you moaned loudly-you were relieved there was nobody else in the Church just then. You had no idea how you'd explain it to the others. "Would you mind... trying something?" You looked down at Copia and shook your head as you smiled. With one hand, he brought your left arm forward and set your hand against his throat. You looked at him and, when he nodded, you brought your other arm forward and set your hand against his throat. "A-are you sure?" You asked, Copia simply nodded. With a nod, you began to apply pressure to his throat with your thumbs, hearing him groan as his breath was restricted. When you eased up, he gasped for air and his head fell back as his thrusts became faster and harder, causing you to moan loudly. Your hands once again tightened around his neck, moaning as he angled his hips upwards and hit something deep inside you. You remived your hands again and he gasped for air, moaning loudly when his lungs were filled again. "You kinky son of a Bitch." Copia's eyes met yours and he simply smirked and thrust harshly, causing you to rise further up the wall and practically scream. His eyes widened at this reaction and he repeated the process twice, causing your hands to tighten around his neck and your nails to dig into the sides, breaking the skin as you came. Your ears were ringing and your eyes were closed so tightly you were beginning to see white dots. When you opened them, you went wide eyed and gasped as you brought your hands away. "Shit! Are you okay?" Copia gasped for air and put you down on the floor, moaning loudly as he finished. He stumbled a little before falling to the floor, laying on his back as his chest rose and fell heavily. You laid beside him and smiled when his arms wrapped around your waist, pulling you close to him. For a long while, you were both silent as you regained your energy and breaths. "Does it... bother you?" He asked, you looked up at him and moved your head to one side, noticing he shifted awkwardly and stared up at the ceiling. "My... indulgences?" You repeated the word under your breath a few times before you nodded and smiled to yourself. "Why would it?" Was all you asked before you set up, pressed a kiss to his lips and stood from the floor. Copia propped himself up on his elbows as he watched you walk to the far wall, pull back a black curtain and open a closet. "How long has that been there?" Copia asked in disbelief, you laughed to yourself and shook your head as you took out a bottle, two glasses and a small wooden box before joining him on the floor once again. "Did you explore this office at all?" You asked, laughing when he simply shook his head. You popped the cork in the bottle of Whiskey, smelling it and sighing deeply before you poured two glasses and handed one to Copia. He watched you with one eyebrow raised as he shook his head and took a drink, coughing when it warmed his chest. You opened the wooden box and brought out two cigarettes, offering one to Cardinal but he refused. You lit yours and took a drink before you inhaled a cloud of smoke. "I spent a lot of time in here after Emitrius died. I hid these in here, I'd lock the door and barricade myself in here, drinking and smoking. I have some in the morgue, too." Copia took a drink and nodded. "I hope you don't mind me asking this." Copia asked, you turned to look at him and smiled as you blew out a cloud of smoke. He swilled the whiskey around his glass awkwardly as he spoke. "Did you and he... in here?" You were a little surprised by the question, you had to admit, but you didn't mind. You simply nodded. Copia nodded and took another drink. "Do you compare me to him?" "No, of course not. You're you and he was... him. Sure, you look a little alike and you have the same qualities of his I loved, but you're not him." You told him, Copia simply nodded and finished his whiskey, you refilled his glass and watched him. "What has she said to you?" His eyes met yours and one eyebrow raised. "By 'she' I assume you mean Sister Imperator?" He asked, for some reason, thus annoyed you. "She hasn't said anything to me. Only that... you and Emitrius were close. Very close. She seems to think that-" "That I'm sleeping with you to try get over Emitrius?" You interrupted, Copia sighed and took a drink from his whiskey. "Copia, I'm not doing that. True, I'm not over Emitrius. It will take me a long time and I'm not sure if I ever will be. But I'm spending time with you because I like you. I see a common spirit in you that he had, that I have! That woman she's... poisoning your mind!" You put your cigarette out with an annoyed groan and finished your whiskey in one large drink. You laid down and stared at the ceiling with your arms folded across your chest. When you heard Copia sigh, he soon appeared above you and took your face in his hands as he forced you to look at him. "That woman is not poisoning my mind. The only reason I asked was... I didn't want my feelings for you to grow any stronger if in a while you'll just...throw me aside. I don't expect you to just... get over him like that. I'm here to help you through it. I don't want you to ever forget him." Copia said to you, you sighed and nodded, humming when he leant down and kissed you deeply. When he broke the kiss, Copia smirked to you as he kissed down your chest and stomach, bringing your legs over his shoulders was his head dipped between your legs, causing you to moan loudly as your back arched from the floor.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter with Bible in mind. I think it goes well with the plot for this part of the story.

~~~1 Week Later~~~

You sat with your eyes closed in the confession booth, your head was resting against the back wall and you were breathing softly. You often did this-when the main hall was free, you either looked at the windows or retreated to the confession booth to put yourself in a state of meditation-cut off from everybody.

"You're worried about something. I can always tell when you're worrying. You're forehead gets these little lines, you constantly frown and your eyes look big and doey." You heard Emitrius say to you, you huffed out a laugh and shook your head, not bothering to open your eyes.

"You can't even see my eyes. How do you know what they look like?" You asked, waiting for the reply.

"Because I know you're worrying." He said, you finally opened your eyes and looked through the hatch, seeing Emitrius smiling to you a little. "Tell me. This is a confession booth, after all." You laughed a little and nodded, thinking of how to tell him exactly what was wrong. "Is it Sister Imperator?" You nodded slowly, hearing Emitrius hum. "It's not just her. Papa Nihil?" You simply shook your head. Emitrius was silent for a while before you heard him exhale an 'ah'. "Cardinal?" Your head sank when he said this, however he shifted in his seat and he nodded, crossing his arms over his chest. "So, tell me all." You turned to look at him to find him watching you, he didn't look angry or insulted-he looked concerned. With a deep sigh, you nodded and finally spoke. 

"We've... you know. Become good friends, I trust him. That's a rare thing here there days, I only have Copia, the Ghouls, you..." You began, Emitrius nodded as he listened. "I think I've done something stupid." You hid your face in your hands and sighed deeply. 

"You have had sex with him?" He asked, hearing Emitrius ask this was like a knife to your chest-you simply nodded without lifting your head. "What is the problem? We had sex and you never thought you'd done something stupid. Not to my knowledge, anyway." When you heard this, you lifted your head and looked at him, seeing him smiling to you. "Now, you listen to me. I don't want you regretting anything. Just because i am no longer around doesn't mean you should just stop loving, stop being intimate with other men. I know I can trust Cardinal. He's an idiot, granted, a clumsy idiot. But a trustworthy idiot." You laughed as he said this and you found yourself nodding. "The only thing I will ever be concerned about is how that Sister treats you. Your relationship with Copia is your own business. If you are looking for my blessing, you do not need it." You smiled weakly and nodded as you looked down at the floor.

"Thank you." You said in a quiet voice. You closed your eyes once again and sighed deeply as your head once again hit the back of the booth.

"I do the same thing." A frail, grovely voice in a thick accent said, causing you to jump as you opened your eyes. Looking into the next booth you saw Papa Nihil sitting where Emitrius had just been. The ancient man smiled a little to you before raising the mask to his mouth, inhaling the oxygen before he turned to look at you with the glazed eyes. "When I need to think or I want time to myself, I come here. It is peaceful, no?" You simply nodded. "You seem troubled. Constantly."

"I'm fine. I just... wanted to think." You replied, wondering why you were even speaking to the man. He was just as bad as the Sister.

"I know of your feelings. Towards Copia, towards Emitrius. Towards myself and the Sister. Where I feel your feelings are justified, please know this: I regret what happened." You turned to look at the ancient man again when he said this, your eyes slightly wide in shock. His breathing was uneven and he took another breath from the mask. "The New Era will be tough. Difficult. Sister has some... strange changes. But please know, everything that is going to happen would have happened none the less. Emitrius and his brothers did not deserve what happened to them. Alas, I only see that how. Copia cares for you, you know this? He is a good man. I was doubtful at first but I now see why he was chosen. He knows what is truly important." You found yourself beginning to cry as you listened to the old man, you had completely misjudged him. He was frail, shaking and looked incredibly ill, he could hardly breathe without the oxygen and you didn't know if he could see. He was nothing but an old man. Nothing evil. "Tell me. Do you care for Copia?" You looked at the floor and simply nodded. "Then no matter what happens, you must remember that. He will protect you against anything, but you must also protect him against some things. The Church is a double edged sword-with a very sharp blade. None of us are safe." You wondered what the man meant, however you simply nodded.

"Thank You, Father." You replied in a low voice as you wiped your eyes. The elder simply shook his head and hummed quietly. "Father?" You looked through the hatch again to find the old man looking your way, nodding as he waited for you to continue. "The rose gardens. Are they still here? I haven't been outside in long I can hardly remember what fresh air feels like."

"Yes. Sister wished to have them removed. But... Copia and the Ghouls refused. They were rather insistent, but they succeeded in changing her mind." He told you, you smiled and cried a little more. So they did care. "They are important to you, yes?" You simply nodded and wiped your eyes once again. "Well, there is nobody there. Go, have some time to yourself. Reflect on what I have told you." With a nod, you bowed your head to the Father before you left the booth. ~~~ You had been sitting in the centre of the rose garden for hours, listening to the sounds of nature, the wind and the trickling of a stream somewhere nearby. The whole atmosphere was so relaxing, as you sat you thought about what Papa Nihil had told you. It had grown dark and you were laying on the grass, your eyes were closed and your arms were stretched out wide beside you as you idly ran your hands over the long grass. Your eyebrows flinched when you felt a drop of cold rain land on your face before more fell from the dark sky, you simply smiled and sighed deeply as you enjoyed the feeling. "There is a star in the sky, guiding my way with its light." Copia sang, gathering your attention. You propped yourself up on your elbows as you turned to look at him, he was standing with his arms folded across his chest as he leant against a nearby wall. A smile was across his face as he looked at you, with one leg crossing the other. You smiled when you saw his suir-the same as the other, only white. "New clothes?" You asked, he simply nodded and smiled as he stood straight and turned around for you, causing you to wolf whistle jokingly as he laughed. "Come join me." You patted the grass beside you, Copia held out a gloved hand and caught the rain in the palm of it, glancing to you once again. When you laid back down, you heard him sigh before he laid beside you. You turned to look at him to find him smiling at you before he looked up. "Look at all those beautiful stars. Amazing, aren't they?" He asked, you looked upwards and smiled as you nodded. "I always find stars fascinating. So beautiful, so incredible and yet so far away." Your smile grew as Copia spoke, he seemed truly lost in his own thoughts as his eyes scanned the dark sky high above you both. You closed your eyes once again when the rain landed in your eyes, but you smiled when you felt Copia's hand slide into your own-his fingers tightened around yours. You jolted a little when a loud crack of thunder sounded and the sky lit up with lightening. "The Earth was spinning all vacant and waste and there was silence over the ocean. When a voice came thundering from above, the first day of light was in motion." You smiled and turned to look at Copia again as he sang, humming the rest of the tune to himself. "They say that's what thunder and lightening is, you know? God. People believe thunder is God commanding them, talking to them." "I was scared of thunder as a child. I always thought it was a monster coming to kill me." You told him, Copia's fingers tightened around your own again before he lifted it, spread your fingers wide and held it to the sky. You watched him as his own fingers glided along your hand and a smile grew on his face. "Your hands are so delicate." He whispered, as though he was speaking to himself. Your heart rate increased when he moved your hand to his lips and he pressed a kiss to the back of it, turned it and pressed another to your palm. "I was talking to Papa Nihil." You finally said, Copia turned to look at you with one eyebrow raised and concern in his eyes. "I was in the confession booth talking... thinking to myself. He came in without realising I was there, I misjudged him. He... helped me. He told me you and the Ghouls stopped Sister Imperitor removing the garden. Thank you, Copia." He nodded in realisation when you explained to him. When you spoke about the garden, he smiled and wrapped his arm around you, pulling you close to his chest. You buried your face in his chest and took in his slightly spicy smell, his jacket and shirt was damp from the rain. He pressed a kiss to your hair and hummed deeply before he closed his eyes and started to hum a tune you didn't recognise. The two of you remained like that for a while, until the rain grew heavier and the wind began to whistle. "Let's go inside, Rosa Mea*. We should get dry and warm." He said to you, you sensed sleep in his voice which made you smile as you nodded. Copia helped you to your feet, dusting the loose grass from your clothes before he took your hand and led you inside. He checked the hallways before he led you to his office, allowing you in first before he locked the door after him. He walked to the closet and took out two of his long robes, a black and a red. He handed the black to you along with a towel and smiled, you removed your dress over your head and dropped it to the floor before you began to unbutton the robe. Once it was open, you put your arms through and let it hang loose as you dried your hair with the towel. When you turned to look at Copia, he had removed the jacket and shirt and let his trousers fall to the floor. As he stood with his back to you, naked, you arched an eyebrow when you looked at his back, seeing the scars from punishments-including the most recent one. Your eyes travelled down, over his rear, to the backs of his thighs and you tried not to gasp when you saw the same marks there. How many beatings had he taken? When he turned to look at you, you quickly looked down, moving the towel to dry the front of your hair. You hoped Copia hadn't noticed you looking at him. "How about some wine?" You placed the towel down and smiled as you nodded, doing up the robe. Copia slid the red one over his shoulders and buttoned it to the middle of his chest before he walked to the small table and poured two glasses. You took a seat and thanked him when he handed you a glass before he disappeared and hummed as he looked for something. He joined you soon after and music began to play over the record speaker-it sounded like an old barber shop quartet record which took you by surprise. "I didn't think this would be your thing?" You remarked, Copia smiled and shrugged as he hummed to the music, which made you smile. He took a drink from his wine and ran a hand through his still damp hair-you couldn't help but smile when you looked at him like this. The usual slicked back black hair was now messy and wild, made worse by his hand combing through it. When Copia noticed you were looking at him, he smiled and raised an eyebrow. "Enjoying your view?" Copia asked, you smiled and looked down when you felt a blush growing on your cheeks. You took a drink from your wine and listened to the music. "You know, I used to listen to this song a lot in my youth. It always makes me smile." You smiled when you looked back at Copia, his eyes were closed and he was humming to the tune. "Can I... ask you something?" You asked, Copia's eyes opened and he nodded with a small smile on his face. As you sighed deeply, he took a drink from his wine and waited for you to speak. "Those marks.... on your legs. What happened?" Copia placed the glass down, running his tongue along his lips and sighed deeply as he sat back. "Well, before I became the head of this Church, I worked as a Priest in another. Sister Imperator and Papa Nihil also ruled over that one. I started there when Emitrius' second brother was in charge of this one. I was younger back then, rebellious and I didn't like to listen to people. Well, that's how I got them. Many different occasions of not listening to higher powers." He told you, you nodded and took a drink from your own wine, noticing Copia was watching you closely. "The Sister had a... strange taste in punishments then. Thankfully, they have changed now. She would hit the Priests on the backs of they're thighs and the Sisters were usually targeted across their hands." You gasped when Copia told you this, he held out his hands and showed you his palms as he did so. "That's... awful." You muttered, taking another drink from your wine. "And... the cane?" Your eyes travelled to the cane resting against the side of the desk. Copia's eyes did the same before he looked back to you. "Did she give you that for... so you could punish people?" Copia sighed deeply, sat back in his chair and picked up the cane, turning it in his hands as he looked at it. When his eyes finally met yours again, his face looked serious and, to your surprise, something that resembled lust. "Honestly? You want the truth about why I got this cane?" He asked, his voice quiet and low. With a shaky breath, you nodded. Copia sighed again and ran his hand over the head of the cane. "I got it because I thought it matched my suits. Don't you agree?" When he asked you this, his eyes met yours again and a large smile broke out across his face when you began to laugh. He laughed with you, his smile growing as your laughter grew louder. "Your laugh is wonderful, Rosa Mea. It fills me with warmth." Your laughter grew quieter and you smiled across to him before you took another drink. When you shivered, Copia placed the cane down, stood from his chair and held out a hand to you. When you took it, he led you through another door in his office which led to a bedroom. The room looked like any other- although there were long, scarlet curtains hanging from the walls. "Please, take a seat." You nodded and sat on the edge of his bed. He knelt in front of a fire place, placed some logs inside and struck a match. You smiled when the dim light from the fire lit the room slightly and the heat began to warm your skin. When Copia sat beside you on the bed, he hummed deeply and rubbed his hand in small circles on the bottom of your back. Your eyes closed gently and you smiled to yourself. "Your skin feels so cold. Do you feel okay?" "I'm fine. I just... can't stop thinking about those marks on your back and legs." You replied, hearing Copia sigh deeply before his hands gently settled on your shoulders and began to massage them. With a growing smile, you moved the robe down to the small of your back. When his hands touched your shoulders again, you noticed his hands were bare-the skin in his hands was warm and, to your surprise, a little rough. When a pair of lips pressed to your neck, you hummed and rolled your head to the side. "You don't need to worry about me. I can take care of myself. It's me who should be protecting you, Amica mea." When Copia whispered this to you, he pressed a kiss to the back of your shoulder before he continued to massage them. The name he called you sounded familiar, you thought you had heard it before. Perhaps Emitrius had once called you it? You sighed and closed your eyes once again when his bare fingers gently massaged your smooth skin. "I just ask one thing." Copia's hands fell still and you turned to look at him over your shoulder. When you saw his facial expression you turned to face him fully and sat on your knees, holding the open robe to your chest. You reached one hand out and pressed it to his cheek when he looked down at the bed. "Copia?" You asked, he looked up at you once again and held his arms out to you, wiggling his fingers. With a nod, you climbed into his lap and wrapped your arms and legs around him. He hummed deeply as he took in your scent as his arms held your waist. He looked up and, when his eyes met yours, you knew it was about something serious. "Promise me that no matter what Sister Imperator asks of you, you will do it. With no arguments." He said to you in a serious tone of voice, you raised one eyebrow and sighed deeply, opening your lips to ask him what this was about. "Promise me." When he asked again, you simply sighed and placed a hand on his cheek. A small smile crossed his lips and his eyes closed for a moment. "Gratias tibi**, Amica Mea." With that, he pressed a kiss to your lips and brought you closer to him, holding you to his chest as he deepened it and fell back onto the bed, letting the robe fall from your body. *-My Rose **Thank you


	8. Chapter 8

~1 Week Later~

You were sat in the main hall, looking around at the sisters sitting on the opposite side of the hall. When you heard the doors open, you turned to see the Ghouls and Copia walking into the hall: you couldn't help but notice that Copia looked nervous and a little bit ill. He avoided your gaze as he walked to the front of the hall, standing beside Papa Nihil and Sister Imperator. When Omega sat beside you, you turned to look at him with one eyebrow raised.

"What's going on?" You asked him, the Ghoul simply shrugged his shoulders before you looked back at the front of the hall.

"Sisters, Ghouls. We asked you here today for something incredibly special." The old Sister said, causing you to narrow your eyes. Her eyes scanned the room and she smirked when they landed on you. "As you know, we have some new Sisters amongst us who need to be baptised into the Church. Now, we have begun a new era. We cannot have only some Sisters baptised under the new leader and so, you shall all be rebaptised in our new ways." When you heard this, your eyes widened and your jaw dropped, however when Copia noticed this, his eyes travelled to Omega. The Ghoul set his hand on your thigh and squeezed tightly. You turned to look at him but found his eyes glued to the front. "Now, the process is very simple. Our new Sisters will each be baptised by Copia in the main hall. But the existing Sisters will be going with a Ghoul I have paired them with." Your eyes widened again when you knew what she meant, you noticed Copia's eyes had closed and he was looking at the floor-she had told him what you had to do. "Now. Omega, take Sister (name) to your chamber." You looked up at Omega and prepared to stand, however you remembered the promise you made to Copia. Is this what he was making you promise about? You noticed his eyes were finally watching you and, when yours met his, his brows arched and his eyes seemed wide and concerned. With a deep breath, you simply nodded to him. His brows eased a little as he nodded back to you before you stood from the bench and left the hall with Omega following closely behind you. Once you were outside, your back rested against the wall as you sighed deeply. "That... bitch! She's doing this on purpose, isn't she?" You asked Omega, sinking down the wall to sit on the floor. You brought your knees to your chest and sighed deeply. When Omega joined you on the floor and took the same position, you turned to look at him and sighed once again. "I can't answer that. Who knows why she's doing this?" He replied, you groaned and buried your head in your knees, you felt Omega put his arm around you as he brought you closer to him. He sighed deeply and pressed a kiss to your hair. "If...if makes you feel better.. Copia doesn't have to... you know-" "Have sex with them?" You said, he sighed and nodded. He was right, it did bring you a small amount of comfort knowing Copia didn't have to sleep with any of the new Sisters. However, you still had to have sex with Omega. You loved him, but as a brother. You knew the only reason the elderly sister was doing this was to enrage you-and it had worked. "You know, we don't have to. I can just tell the sister we did. I know what this means to you and... I don't want things to become awkward between us." Omega told you, with a small smile, you turned to look at him and put a hand on the cold, smooth metal of the mask. His eyes closed and one of his hands held yours. His skin was cold and rough, which surprised you. "Come on, let's go get a drink. We can hide from that wicked old witch." You said as you nudged him with your elbow, he nodded and stood from the floor, pulling you to your feet before you both walked down the hall. Omega laughed as he sat on your bed, his back was resting against the wall and his long legs were stretched out in front of him. You were sitting opposite him with your legs crossed as you both drank wine. You had spoken about anything expect the Church, except the Sister and Papa Nihil. You knew Omega was trying to keep your mind from Copia and other matters and it had worked-for a while. It was only when you heard Copia and the Sister speaking as they walked down the hall outside. "Copia, don't you knock on that door. I've told you before that you should leave that girl alone. As we speak she will be doing what she does best with yet another member of the Church. Come, a drink to toast the new members and our new era! We are growing further away from those Fools with each day." The Sister commented before footsteps could no longer be heard. You looked down at the the bed beneath you and sighed deeply, feeling your eyes filling with tears. "Don't listen to her. You're not what she says you are. I can see what is going on between you and Copia is genuine-anyone can. I haven't seen you so happy since..." He trailed off and his eyes flicked to the goblet he was holding in his hands. You wiped a tear as it fell from your eye and looked across the room, towards the door and now silent doorway beyond. "You know, after Emitrius died I didn't think I'd be happy ever again. I certainly didn't think I'd be able to feel like this about anyone again." You told the Ghoul, who's steely eyes met yours once again. You finished your drink and sighed deeply. "I didn't think I could... love someone again." You looked back at Omega to see his eyes widened a little. "What would he say? I'm in love with the man who replaced him. I'm a horrid person, aren't I?" "No, of course you're not. Emitrius would have wanted you to be happy, he would have wanted you to love again. He... chose Copia for a reason. He knew he could trust him, that he would take care of you and that you would feel comfortable with him. He wouldn't be disgusted, he wouldn't hate you. He'd be... relieved. Relieved that you're happy, that you're able to smile again. You mourned that man for so long and I know you still are-it was killing you. It was eating away at you like a disease. Emitrius would have hated seeing you that way-pale, thin, sick." Omega told you, taking your hands in his as he squeezed them tightly. You couldn't help but cry as Omega spoke, you knew what he was saying was true-but whenever you thought about your growing feelings towards Copia your stomach turned. When Omega's thumb brushed away a tear, you turned to look at him again. "Emitrius would be proud if he could see you now." With a smile, you sat forward and hugged the Ghoul tightly-closing your eyes. "He's right, you know?" You heard Emitrius say, you opened your eyes and smiled a little when you saw him. He was standing with his back against the wall, had arms folded over his chest and one leg crossed the other. He smiled a little back to you before he spoke again. "I hated seeing you like that. You weren't the woman I knew. Love always did make you the most beautiful-you have the glow back to your cheeks, the beautiful glimmer to your eyes." Emitrius walked to the edge of the bed and knelt down, taking your hand in his. A gloved thumb ran over the backs of your fingers before he pressed a kiss there and smiled up to you. "How could you think I'd be upset with you? I'm happy. I'm happy that you're happy, my love." You smiled and let another tear fall from your eye. "Now, now. Enough tears." He kissed away the tear from your cheek and kept his face close to yours. "Now, you go and tell that fool how you feel. If he rebuffs you, tell me. I'll haunt the shit out of him." You started to laugh, hearing Emitrius' own deep laugh joining yours before a pressed a kiss to your hair. "What are you laughing at?" Omega asked as he sat back, when you opened your eyes Emitrius was gone. You simply wiped your eyes and shook your head with a smile. "Go and find Copia, talk to him about this." ~~~1 Day Later~~~ You sat looking around Copia's office, sitting in a chair as you nervously drummed your hands against your knees. You didn't know where he was and the longer you waited for him the more nervous you got. With a sigh, you stood from the chair and started to walk to the door, however it swung open and Copia stepped into the room, sighing deeply as he removed the small red hat from his head. "Stultus dampnas*... Oh, hello, Rosa Mea." He said, smiling weakly as he pressed a gentle kiss to your lips. You smiled nervously and kissed him back. He sighed once again and turned to look at his reflection in the mirror after throwing the hat onto the desk. "Now, how can I help you?" You watched Copia for a while as he struggled with one of the buttons on the scarlet robe, until he growled in irritation. "Here, let me." You walked to meet him, smiled when he turned around and began to undo the buttons. You could sense that he was agitated and a little tense, the muscles beneath his skin felt tensed. "Whats wrong? I can tell when you're thinking about something." When you looked up again, you found Copia's eyes were already watching you and a small smile appeared on his lips. His hand touched your cheek, the cool leather felt soothing in your hot skin. "You always worry about me. Why is that?" He asked, you simply shrugged and smiled when he pressed his lips to yours once again. Your stomach tightened and a warmth spread through your entire body- from your chest to your toes. His free hand settled on your waist and pulled you closer to him, when you felt his bulge pressing against your leg, you put your hands on his chest and took a step back. Copia raised an eyebrow and rubbed his thumb against your cheek. "Whats wrong?" "I... I came here to speak to you about something." You took his hand and led him to his seat, he sat down with a nod as he sat forward, holding your hand. With a deep breath, you nodded and looked down at the floor. "What is it, Amica Mea?" He asked, there it was again. That name. You knew you had heard it, however you didn't know where. When you looked up, Copia's eyes locked on yours and he smiled gently. With another nod, you smiled a little. "Okay, well. I wanted to tell you that... I've realised something. Something big." You told him, he nodded but the smile faded from his face. "I... I... okay, I can do this." You closed your eyes and took another deep breath, however when you felt Copia's hands wrap around yours, you looked up at him to find him smiling down to you with calm, gentle eyes. He placed a hand on your cheek, brushing it gently with his thumb. "Whatever it is you need to tell me, Rosa, you can." Copia whispered to you, with a smile and a nod, you took another deep breath. "I love you." You quickly said, Copia'a eyes widened a little, which caused you to panic. "I... shit, I'm sorry." You quickly stood and walked to the door, however Copia caught your hand and stopped you. You looked down at the floor and took a deep breath, waiting to hear what he had to say. You felt stupid and sick, your stomach churned and you were sweating. "Many a sin I have witnessed and in many indeed I have been. Many a rat I've befriended, and so many a thorn stood between." Copia began, causing you to raise an eyebrow as you listened to him. Copia stepped forward, put his hands on your cheeks and forced you to look up at him, seeing his eyes now made you gasp and breathe deeply. They were dark, large and filled with what looked like compassion. "But of all the demons I've known, none could compare to you." He whispered this part before he leant forward and pressed his lips to yours. You gasped against his lips and staggered back until your back hit the door. When it did, Copia lifted you and you wrapped your legs around his waist, your hands climbed into his hair. His lips left yours and moved to your neck, causing your head to fall back as you moaned loudly. "Unus amor meus es tu**." When you heard this, you looked at Copia and simply smiled, not really knowing what he just said. He placed you down on the floor, took your hands and led you back to the desk. With a smile, you pushed away the stack of papers there, climbed onto it and smirked darkly to Copia as you lifted your legs and pulled your robe further up your thighs. His eyes turned dark and he growled deeply before he pushed you backwards, bringing his trousers down as he pushed into you roughly. You gasped loudly and your hands climbed into his dark hair as he rolled his hips upwards, closing his eyes as he growled deeply. Your legs wrapped around his slender waist and you dug your heels into his back, bringing his hips closer to yours. Copia's lips moved to your collar bone and roughly bit the skin there, causing you to gasp in a mixture of pain and delight. When he sat back, his own miscoloured eyes met yours before he leant down and pressed a long, passionate kiss to your lips as his hips slowed down, but the thrusts grew deeper and more tender. *-Damn Fools **You are my only love


End file.
